Charlie Finley, a meddlesome owner if ever that was, took a break
from firing and rehiring manager Alvin Dark over a Kansas City Athletics player
revolt to give Ken Harrelson his unconditional release on August 3, 1967.

The Hawk, at the time, with an .832 OPS and 147 OPS+ in 61 games,
was K.C.'s best hitter.

The quick and dirty summary of the circumstances:

Hawk had been a member of the Athletics organization since signing
with the club in 1959 (convinced he could make the majors more quickly through
lowly K.C. than in the system of his other suitor, the Los Angeles Dodgers). He
was traded to the Washington Senators in 1966 and sold right back to K.C. a
year later. For two months, it looked as if he had finally found a home in
Kansas City, and in the majors.

Then, a trumped-up episode on a commercial flight, involving supposed
drunkenness from three players (Hawk not included) resulted in a report filed
to Finley from broadcaster/team spy Monte Moore. Finley, no debonair
practitioner of the finer things himself, was nonetheless outraged by this
half-story and announced that no A's would be served alcohol on any future
flights. The clubhouse was up in arms over such fire-breathing restrictions,
and a team statement was released in response to Finley, which got Dark in hot
water (Finley believed Dark was behind the team statement, when in truth he was
unaware of its release).

After Dark's firing, Hawk--a little bristled up, as you might
imagine--told a reporter that he felt Finley's actions were detrimental to
baseball (pretty inarguable, that). Harrelson was also misquoted as calling
Finley a "menace to baseball" (probably not far off, but something
employers don't usually want to hear).

Finley, in typical rash fashion, chose not to trade or waive
Harrelson, moves that would have netted his club players or cash in return. No,
the hotheaded owner gave Hawk a taste of free agency, in a sense, with an
outright release.

Harrelson got to choose from several contending teams pursuing his
services (including the Yomiuri Giants), and as anyone who watches Chicago
White Sox broadcasts knows, he chose the Boston Red Sox. Hawk would play
somewhat sparingly as the Red Sox fought their way to the 1967 AL pennant but
had a key RBI in the pennant-clincher on October 1. Later that month, he would
get his only World Series experience (four games) in Boston's crushing loss in
seven games to the St. Louis Cardinals.

In 1968, Hawk had a monster year for the Red Sox, finishing third
in MVP voting, earning his only All-Star selection, and leading the AL with 109
RBI. His OPS of .874 and OPS+ of 155 were career-best marks, and his 4.6 WAR
that single season essentially represents the sum value of his entire career.

Between the senseless release from Kansas City and confirmed
success as a major leaguer in Boston, it seems something clicked in the Hawk.
He'd finally learned how to be a pro, and he wasn't going to let anything hold
him back from there. He took the unheard-of freedom (a so-called "sneak
peak" at free agency that would arrive in baseball eight years later)
allocated by Finley and made it work phenomenally for him. After badly breaking
his leg sliding into second in 1970, Hawk would lose his passion for the game
and play in just 69 more contests, quitting the game three years into his
Cleveland Indians tenure to pursue a career as a golfer.

He did come back to the
game some four years later, broadcasting for the Red Sox, and is now a mainstay
of the White Sox organization as booster and critic alike--colorful either way.
And to think, if not for Finley rashly cutting him loose 45 years ago, the
Hawk might just be hustling pool or scratch golfing instead of entertaining
hundreds of thousands every night.

About Poetry in Pros

Brett most recently logged a couple of beats at CSNChicago, first following the Blackhawks and covering their first Stanley Cup win in 49 years, then shifting to the South Side and the White Sox.

His sportswriting career began right before the turn of the century, first as an editor for Basketball News and later editing Basketball Digest and Bowling Digest. He has written for Baseball Digest and MLB Trade Rumors, as well as the Chicago White Sox and MLB World Series programs, as well as Slam, Hoop, Inside Stuff, Courtside, Rinkside, and numerous NBA game programs. He has been featured in ESPN the Magazine, the Chicago Sun-Times, the Baltimore Sun and Crain's Chicago Business, and on Comcast Sports Net, NBA-TV, NHL.com, MLB.com, WLS-TV, WGN-TV and the BBC. He's also written features for the NBA Finals and NBA All-Star Game programs.

Brett is the author of the essential baseball reference work 'The Wit and Wisdom of Ozzie Guillen.' When Ozzie first saw the book, on Opening Night 2006, he cracked wise to those in his manager's office, asking, "What's wisdom?" To which owner Jerry Reinsdorf replied, "Don't worry, Ozzie. You don't have any."

A lifelong Chicago sports fan, the first game Brett attended was on Dec. 4, 1976, watching the Bulls snap a (still) franchise-record 13-game losing streak and setting in motion the playoff run that would come to be defined as the Miracle on Madison. At Brett's first White Sox game on June 4, 1977, Richie Zisk of the South Side Hit Men homered over the roof at Comiskey Park at a time when the feat was as rare as a no-hitter. Brett's first Chicago Bears game was on Oct. 7, 1984, when Walter Payton broke the all-time NFL career rushing mark.

More than anything, however, Brett is a baseball and a White Sox fan, having seen hundreds of games over his lifetime, including a walk-off grand slam by Carlos Lee to defeat the Cubbies, the infamous Michael Barrett sucker-punch on A.J. Pierzynski, a then-season record home run by Oscar Gamble in 1977, Bobby Thigpen's 50th season save in 1990, and the classic Blackout tiebreaker win over the Twins in 2008. There have been many pilgrimages to see the team, including a September 1990 drive up from Texas to see a final series at Comiskey Park, an April 1991 flight to watch the otherwise-unmentionable first game at the then-New Comiskey Park, outrunning a snowstorm to see the White Sox be whitewashed in a late September game at Kauffman Stadium, and a jaunt down to the Hovering Sombrero in 2005 to catch the club take on the Tampa Bay Rays.

His highlight as a fan is, of course, witnessing the entire home run of 2005 White Sox playoff victories, including the two extraordinary wins over the Houston Astros at USCF that spurred a World Series sweep. More recently, he took in Mark Buehrle's perfect game in 2009, during which Brett made the boldest prediction imaginable—not of an eventual perfect game, but a Josh Fields grand slam! Brett has watched games in every major league city.

Brett graduated from Texas Christian University with a Journalism and English degree and came thisclose to finishing his English master's at Kansas State University while teaching composition to disinterested agribusiness majors. He's won a number of writing awards in areas as varied as poetry, fiction, features, news reporting and opinion writing. Brett lives in Florida with his incomparable wife, Angelique.

Poetry in Pros Trivia

Now that you know a little bit about Poetry in Pros writer Brett Ballantini, see how you score below. True or false, Brett:

Believes that the ABA saved professional basketball.

Borrowed the title of the first draft of his master's thesis from a Camper Van Beethoven song.

Co-founded and played in a band called Ethnocentric Republicans, who once shared a bill with 15-minutes-of-fame grunge rockers The Toadies.

Considers nachos piled high with jalapenos as his go-to concession food.

Gave a Crunch bar to then-Nestle spokesman Shaquille O'Neal before their first interview together in Milwaukee. Later saw an empty Crunch bar wrapper in Shaq's locker.

Gave three photographs from his personal collection to the Chicago Bulls for their "walk of fame" leading to the locker room at the United Center.

Had four front teeth.

Has appeared in one movie, in which he was murdered when Albert Einstein slammed his head in a door.

Has appeared on the cover of a magazine with a circulation of 100,000. As Santa Claus. Bowling.

Has attended just three games in Wrigley Field as a fan. One was to see the Chicago Sting.

Has been a vegetarian for 30 years.

Has been doused by Bill Veeck's outfield shower in two different decades, in two different White Sox parks.

Hasn't cried over a game since Tito Landrum crushed that homer off of Britt Burns in October 1983.

Has worked for at least seven publications that are no longer in business.

Kissed the Minnie Minoso statue in the outfield concourse at Sox Park on the cheek as a good-luck gesture before Game 1 of the 2005 World Series.

Caught a foul ball while covering a preseason game from the roof of Tempe Diablo Stadium. On his birthday.

To Wit:

"When I build a fire under a person, I do not do it merely because of the enjoyment I get out of seeing him fry, but because he is worth the trouble. It is then a compliment, a distinction; let him give thanks and keep quiet. I do not fry the small, the commonplace, the unworthy."